Leaders from Europe well as Canada are urging Israel to stop its ground incursion into Lebanon.
They say that the attack could lead to “devastating humanitarian consequences” in a country where one million people have been displaced and hundreds of have already been killed in the ongoing Middle East escalation.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has announced a “limited and targeted ground operations against key Hezbollah strongholds” in southern Lebanon on Monday. The operations are said to be aimed at increasing security for residents of northern Israel.
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RT reports: In a joint statement issued Monday, the leaders of France, Germany, Italy, the UK, and Canada said they were “gravely concerned” by the escalating violence and called for “meaningful engagement by Israeli and Lebanese representatives to negotiate a sustainable political solution,” urging “immediate de-escalation.”
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While condemning Hezbollah’s decision to join Iran in hostilities and calling on the group to disarm, the leaders also condemned attacks on civilians, civilian infrastructure, and UN peacekeepers, saying “these actions are unacceptable.”
“A significant Israeli ground offensive would have devastating humanitarian consequences and could lead to a protracted conflict. It must be averted. The humanitarian situation in Lebanon, including ongoing mass displacement, is already deeply alarming,” the statement read.
Israeli strikes on Lebanon have killed 886 people in the past two weeks, with more than 2,000 injured and over 1 million people registered as displaced, according to local authorities.
The broader US-Israel war against Iran has already highlighted a growing rift between European NATO members and Washington. European leaders have rejected US President Donald Trump’s demand to help unblock the Strait of Hormuz, which was de facto closed by Iran after the escalation. German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius delivered the bluntest pushback, saying on Monday that “this is not our war, we have not started it.”
Meanwhile, Trump has warned that NATO faces a “very bad” future if European states fail to act, claiming it is “only appropriate that people who are the beneficiaries of the strait will help.”
